If Tomorrow Never Comes
by sophiaspaul
Summary: AU: All remain human throughout. Is it true one person can influence and have an impact on the rest of your life? Does one single individual have that ability to do so? What if one day you wake up and your world is taken from you within a blink of an eye, a world you didn't even know you had. You cannot predict when this day will come, will it come tomorrow? 10 years time?
1. Chapter 1

**AN: Okay, so my first TVD fanfic, and a Stelena one more specifically. I'm kinda nervous posting this because I'm quite anxious as to what you guys will think. I've got the plot of the story figured out as it's inspired by a movie I watched, having said that it will in no way be a copy, I will add my own twist to it. One thing I will say is that this movie is one of very few that has physically brought tears to my eyes, and if I am able to write this story with similar effect then all I can say is brace yourselves if you decide to stick around to until the end ;)**

**Disclaimer: I don't own The Vampire Diaries or the characters**

**Enjoy!**

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**If Tomorrow Never Comes**

_Mystic Falls... just your average town with a small population. Not much went on around here, I mean, you'd have the odd bit of drama here and there, other than that Mystic Falls was just another town. And me? I'm Elena Gilbert, your average girl._

After an exhausting day at college, Elena sauntered along an alarmingly quiet street near campus. She sighed and shook her head when she noticed a pile of litter left lying on the bench. She reluctantly brushed it all off then sat, drinking her sickeningly cold coffee, awaiting her friend's arrival. The silence surrounding her was broken when she glanced up to see a couple walk past her, giggling about something - that probably wasn't even funny - and looking nauseatingly happy.

It was a surprisingly beautiful day in Mystic Falls, the sun was shining bright, which was rather unusual considering the weather here was pretty much bipolar. Elena used to love sunny weather but even this wasn't enough to spread a smile across her face today. She was suddenly pulled from her thoughts when she heard a familiar male voice yelling, "Elena! Sorry I'm late!" She rolled her eyes as she saw Matt running towards her, his tie flying into his face with a bit of his shirt hanging out of his pants.

_Matt... Hmm is there really any way in which I can articulate my thoughts into words to describe Matt? Alright, so Matt and I, we met at college; we're doing the same course, and on the very first day he attempted to flirt with me, since that very disastrous attempt, we actually became pretty good friends. He's a very confident person, whether that's a good thing or not is a different story, but he'll see a girl and go head first, eight times out of ten that ends badly, but regardless he still has a go. To put it short, Matt doesn't take life seriously and lives in the moment, and sometimes I wish perhaps I was more like that..._

Matt quickly sorted himself out, fixing his shirt and tie before breathlessly explaining, "I got held back in the elevator." Elena immediately noticed that all too familiar smirk and rolled her eyes knowing what the next words coming out of his mouth would be.

"Wait, wait... let me guess, you met a 'hot' girl?" He winked at her, as they began walking. "You really don't stop do you?"

Matt put a friendly arm around Elena. "Let me just tell you now Elena Gilbert, one day I will meet a girl who will fall instantly for my charm. If you continue waiting for love to find you, you'll end up dying alone, which is why you go looking for love yourself." Elena smiled, lightly punching his shoulder.

Before entering her house, Elena inhaled deeply, bracing herself for what she'd be walking into. She heard the sound of pots and pans coming from the kitchen. _So far so good. _

"Elena, is that you?" Elena walked into the kitchen to find her mom cooking dinner. She gave her a sweet kiss on the cheek.

"Oooh what's that smell?" She looked around feeling a bubble of happiness grow inside of her stomach.

"I decided to cook your favourite today, lasagne with your father's special sauce recipe!" Jenna beamed. As Elena was about to respond, her smile faded when she saw her grandmother walk in.

"Hey grandma..." she quietly mumbled. Her grandma strutted past her, blatantly ignoring her.

_That's my grandmother, Miranda. We didn't have the typical relationship every other grandparent and grandchild had, I guess it was complicated. She has always been bitter towards me, and it's gotten progressively worse since my dad died. Jeremy, on the other hand, has a fabulous relationship with her, she treats him like God's gift. I mean, I love my brother to bits but I, admittedly, have always been jealous of the bond between them. _

"What is that awful smell, Jenna?!" Miranda said disgustedly as she scrunched her nose. "What kind of poison are you cooking up in here?!" Elena looked at her grandma in disbelief. There was never a day where Miranda wasn't unnecessarily rude towards Jenna. Of course, Jenna would never retaliate, Miranda, after all, was her mother-in-law and a harmless, yet verbally hurtful, elderly woman. 'Monster-in-law' was the perfect description for what Miranda was.

When Grayson was alive it wasn't so bad, but ever since his tragic death, Miranda had become a nightmare to be around. Elena believed Miranda blamed Jenna for Grayson's death. Neither her nor Jeremy actually knew the truth behind it all, it was purposely kept from them and they never thought to ask in fear it was cause upset and further conflict, so it stayed buried.

Elena could see her mother becoming frustrated, so she quickly changed the subject. "Mom, is Jeremy home?"

Jenna nodded and muttered a quick, "Upstairs" then continued making dinner.

_I sigh and walk upstairs, really not wanting to deal with shit right now. It had became a regular occurrence, I'd come home, watch my grandma be rude to my mom, and I just stand and watch helplessly. If I say anything, my grandma will end up probably hating me even more than she does already._

Elena walked into her brother's room to find him, as usual, playing on his Xbox, one of his dumb shooting games most likely.

_Jeremy Gilbert, my brother, my best friend, the second person I loved most in my life. Jeremy was a typical teenage boy, messy room, addicted to video games, loved sports etc. He was, unfortunately, diagnosed with ADHD when he was 5 years old. I can vaguely remember him making my mom and dad's life a living hell. Some days they'd become so stressed and exhausted that my grandma would be left to look after him. I guess that could a reason why they were close. Anyway, the doctors informed us that because Jeremy was born prematurely it may have primarily been why he had ADHD. As he got older though, it calmed down so his temper tantrums aren't so frequent anymore. I can't help but worry abut him though, he's 16, so I know he is more than capable of looking after himself but he wasn't the best at making friends. He also had social anxiety resulting in a lot of the kids at school isolating him. At one point the bullying got so bad he'd come home crying and not wanting to go to school to the point where he tried to persuade mom and dad to have him home-schooled._

"Hey Jer." Elena smiled and sat on the side of Jeremy's bed, fiddling with the beanie that lay on his bed.

"Hey sis, what's up?" His eyes were glued to the screen at the moment, but nevertheless, he always took the time to pay attention and listen to his older sister.

"Nothing really. Did you go to school today?" she asked in a concerned tone causing Jeremy to roll his eyes. As much as he appreciated the fact Elena was protective, it sometimes got kinda annoying. Just then, she felt the vibration of her phone in her pocket. "Hold that thought." She saw the caller ID - Caroline.

_Ah Caroline, my best friend, if I can even call her that. Caroline Forbes is my neighbour and we've known each other since forever. Although we're different in many aspects. Where she's high heels, I'm sneakers, where she's Chanel, I'm Converse. One phrase to describe Caroline, life of the party. Needless to say, Caroline is a truly lovely human, however she is the single most conceited girl I know. That girl could write a novel about murder, for example, and it'd end up being all about her somehow. She only had one responsibility in life, and that was finding a boyfriend. The only problem was that Caroline will meet someone who shows the slightest hint of interest in her but within minutes into the conversation, they'd realise she's a self-obsessed lunatic, to put in the nicest way. I do very much admire her though, especially since she was there for me when dad died, she'd stay over and comfort me during the nights I couldn't sleep, and for that I'll eternally be grateful. _

"Hey Caroline. How are you?" she greeted her bluntly.

"Elena! You need to look outside like right now!" Elena was taken aback by Caroline's yelling. It was as though all the tranquillity in the world was overshadowed with a worldwide earthquake.

"Caroline, calm down, you almost burst my eardrums there. And aren't you meant to be on holiday?" She asked, looking confused.

"No Elena. Now, like I said, you seriously need to look outside!" Before ending up being harassed by Caroline, she decided to comply and looked outside only to find Caroline waving maniacally.

"You want me to look at you waving like a crazy person?"

"No silly, look directly behind me." Elena squinted intently, not knowing exactly what she was looking for.

"Caroline, I don't see anything," she said in annoyance.

"So you don't see an extremely gorgeous guy, slightly tan, with beyond perfectly sculpted hair and a killer body you'd love to have your hands all over behind me?"

"All I see is back." _A hot back._ "Oh shit, Caroline he's just turned around. Fuck, now he's just seen me and winked! He's going to think I'm a creep!" Caroline was now stood outside laughing at Elena. "I'm just gonna quickly go now before he gets even more suspicious. Besides I gotta eat." She put the phone down shaking off the embarrassment she felt and turned around to see her brother staring at her weirdly, chuckling.

During dinner, Elena's thoughts pondered to the guy she saw. He was hella attractive to say the least. Then she thought about when he winked, which sparked an indication that he was probably just another arrogant douchebag like every other guy she knew.

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**AN: So... what did you think? I would appreciate feedback, whether it's constructive criticism or simply positive comments about the story, just as an indicator to see if I should continue with it. I'm not a professional writer, clearly, so if there's any grammatical errors, I do apologise. **

**The layout of this (the character's subconscious thoughts mixed with the story) I am unsure about, I wasn't planning on continuing like that throughout but if you guys feel like it adds to the story in a positive sense do let me know!**

**Thanks for reading! (Be sure to follow me on twitter for updates at sophiaspaul)**


	2. Chapter 2

**Although I didn't receive much feedback, the feedback I did receive was all positive, so thank you! Anyway, here's the next chapter!**

**Enjoy!**

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_Wow... I'm honestly starstruck. How can one girl's beauty be so overwhelming? It's almost as though the moment I saw her, a rush of electricity travelled down my spine and shocked me into opening my eyes up to someone ever so breath-taking. Even from a distance I could see her beautifully brown eyes piercing their way through mine. The look she gave me was almost a warning sign, as though she was telling me to stay away. But from where I stood, all I could sense was a fiery soul and that fire was exactly why I didn't want to stay away._

Stefan walked into his uncle's home which was directly opposite Elena's, his thoughts still occupied with the image of Elena.

He was suddenly awakened from his thoughts when his uncle greeted him, "Stefan. My man, it's good to see you. Oh you have gotten a lot meatier since I last saw you," he commented, laughing as he gave Stefan's broad shoulders a gentle squeeze.

"Uncle Zach. It's great to be back, you seem to be in pretty great shape yourself," Stefan smiled as he patted his uncle's back. Stefan felt genuinely great to be back, it had been a while since he came here in Mystic Falls, but even more so now because there was an astonishingly attractive girl living opposite.

_I look around me, and nothing has really changed. I mean Uncle Zach has a crappy ass car hanging around in his driveway, but other than nothing. Is that a good thing? I'm not sure yet, I guess we'll find out. But being here brings back a lot memories, some good memories, of course, but now those good memories have somewhat became sad memories since Damon died. Damon's death was a real eye opener for the things that really matter in life. It's never quite been the same, especially with my father, it's like anywhere we go he suddenly decides he wants to move; I understand though, nowhere is home without Damon. But anyway, I don't want to think about that, I came here for a reason and I intend to fulfil that reason. _

After getting themselves somewhat settled, Zach had prepared the three of them some dinner.

"Any unfortunate women in your life Zachary?" asked Stefan's father, Giuseppe, teasingly causing Zach to blush immediately. "Oh well, now that flush of pink across your cheeks tells me that you have some stories to tell us. Do enlighten us little brother." Stefan looked between his father and his uncle, he admired the relationship they had. Despite living apart for many years they still maintained a close bond.

"Well actually, she lives just opposite us. Truly beautiful, I'll tell ya that. Kind-hearted, sweet, funny... but I just don't know if she's interested. Her husband died about a year ago who I was actually good friends with, so that kinda complicates things." Stefan and Giuseppe nodded understandingly. "Anyway, enough about me, are you guys staying here a while or just for a short period?"

"Well Stefan here-"

Stefan quickly interrupted his father, "We're going to see how it goes before deciding anything right now," he stated, forcing a smile. Zach looked at them both suspiciously, something didn't quite seem right, but fortunately for Stefan, he didn't think much else of it. "Uncle Zach, that girl who lives over there, who is she?" Stefan asked curiously.

"Elena? She's the daughter of the woman I was just telling you about." Stefan was almost ready spit out the drink he just took a sip of.

"Wait, did I just hear you correctly? Elena, as in Elena Gilbert?" Zach nodded. "Wow..." Stefan whispered under his breath.

_Elena Gilbert. I was most certainly not expecting that. When Damon and I used to be come here during summer we used to play with her, she was very much a tomboy, and if I remember correctly, she used to love soccer. In fact, and quite awkwardly, Damon had a crush on her. Oh how things have changed. She definitely does not look like the same brace-faced 13 year old she was back then. There still was that element of innocence I remember she had, but the girl I knew back then was full of life and energy, looking at her now I got the impression that almost all that life had been drained out of her. I could be wrong, I guess we'll have to wait and see._

When dinner was finished, Stefan stood looking out the window when he noticed a boy sitting out on his by the stairs of Elena's house, casually bouncing a basketball.

"Hey, pass the ball?" Jeremy looked up, feeling almost intimidated by the sheer presence of a much larger figure. He didn't know whether he was the one being spoken to or not even though there was no one else around but hesitantly passed the ball anyway. "Jeremy Gilbert right?" Jeremy nodded shyly. "Ah, Elena's younger brother. I remember you, you used just run off with the ball when Elena, my brother and I were playing together." Stefan passed the ball back to Jeremy as he could see that he was shuffling uncomfortably. "Up for a one on one?" Jeremy shrugged and got up. The two boys began playing a friendly game of basketball in the middle of the empty road. Jeremy almost looked like a twig compared to the extremely muscular Stefan.

They didn't really speak throughout the duration of them playing but after around twenty minutes, they both got out of breath so they took a rest and sat on the stairs at the front of the Gilbert home.

"So, uh you know my sister?" Jeremy asked - his first words spoken since they met.

Stefan chuckled, "Yeah I guess you could say that. My brother and I, we used to come here during summer vacations and my brother kinda had a crush on her."

"Oh I bet Elena will pleased to hear that he's back." Stefan paused to clear his throat for a moment.

"Ah, well he's not here right now actually. He died, a couple of years back."

Jeremy began stuttering, struggling to know how to respond. "I uh... I'm sorr-" Stefan quickly brushed it off.

"No it's okay man, you weren't to know." Their conversation was interrupted by the sound of Elena yelling for Jeremy to come inside.

"So, I better go, thanks for the game I guess," said Jeremy timidly, giving Stefan a small smile. He grew an instant liking towards him.

"Jeremy! Get in here mom's made desser-" Elena came out to the front porch and finished mid-sentence when she noticed none other than the same guy who winked at her only a couple of hours ago sitting on her steps.

"Dessert? Finally!" Elena seemed to be stood looking like she was in some sort of trance until she snapped back to reality when she heard Stefan chuckle, resulting in a glare from Elena.

"See you around Jeremy, maybe we can play another game some other time." Stefan shoved his hands in his pockets and watched Jeremy head inside. As he was about to head home, he gave Elena cheeky wink."

"Hey!" Elena called out. "What's up with that?" She asked knowing her tone came across more rude than she'd hoped.

"What's up with what?" Stefan asked coyly, pretending he didn't know what she was talking about, he could tell he was getting under her skin and he liked that.

"That wink, obviously. You've done that twice already." As much as she didn't know the guy, he was really beginning to frustrate her right now.

"What? I can't wink now?" He stood smirking.

"Well it's kinda creepy." Who was she kidding, she was actually enjoying the attention she was getting from him, as much as she'd hate to admit it.

"And staring at someone from your bedroom window isn't?" he questioned.

"It wasn't my bedroom window actually, it was my brother's and for your information I was talking to my friend who was stood outside and she just so happened to be stood by you. Anyway I don't have to explain myself to you of all peop-" Elena, to her surprise and annoyance, was cut off by Stefan.

"Don't you need to go inside or something to eat dessert? Why are you still standing here?" he asked, folding his arms and leaning against the wall.

"You're hanging around on my front porch, telling me I need to go inside?" She was quite visibly growing increasingly irritated.

"I didn't tell you to do anything, I was simply asking a question." She was almost about to lose her cool until Jenna came out.

"Elena, what's taking so long we're all waiting for you in there. Your grandmother is getting impatient."

"Well I was just telling this person over here to move off our porch." Jenna turned her attention to the young, and very handsome, man before her.

"Stefan Salvatore? It's been years!" Jenna exclaimed, smiling. Elena's mind was now frantically thinking; she could have sworn she'd heard that name before.

"Mrs Gilbert, it's as though even after all these you're looking much younger and more beautiful as you did before!" Jenna blushed at the compliment. Elena, on the other hand, let out a scoff, making sure Stefan heard.

"Oh stop. Could I invite you inside for some dessert I made?" Elena suddenly looked at her mother incredulously, she could tell Stefan was enjoying this, giving her every reason to object to this.

"I don't know, I wouldn't want to impose." Elena knew exactly what he was doing right now.

"Yeah mom. I'm sure Stefan here has a lot to do, he's only just arrived into the neighbourhood," said Elena, grabbing her mother's arm trying to drag her inside.

"Oh nonsense. Come on inside Stefan, I insist!" Elena's eyes widened and even more so when Stefan finally agreed. As they walked inside he sent Elena another wink, making her want to scream so loud.

_I felt rather harsh right now. I feel like I'm toying with her. But I can't help it, it's enjoyable, especially seeing those adorably cute frown lines every time she gets pissed off at me. But either way, I have her attention now; the balls in my court. As much as I was taking pleasure in seeing her become annoyed I couldn't help but feel this urge to just grab her and kiss her. But I know that if I do that now, I will, without a doubt be slapped. Okay Stefan, lets take this one step at a time._

An awkward silence filled the atmosphere around the dinner table as the five of them sat and ate their dessert. Sensing that this will portray a bad image of the family to Stefan Miranda decided that perhaps it was time someone broke the silence. "Stefan, what a beautiful name, is that Italian?"

"Yes ma'am," he smiled politely, earning a look from Elena. How was it that one person could agitate you so much? A person who she'd not even known for a whole day.

"What do you think of the dessert Stefan? It's not Jenna's best, but God loves a trier." Jenna looked down clearly upset by the patronising and undeniably rude comment made by Miranda. Elena was about to speak up but Stefan beat her to it. He frowned and immediately disagreed.

"I don't know about that, this is a pretty damn delicious dessert Jenna, I feel happy I agreed in joining all of you." He smiled sympathetically at Elena, who seemed stunned but thankful by his reaction, even if he didn't mean it. "Thank you Jenna, it truly was amazing. I hope that I can persuade you all in coming around for dinner to Zach's later on the week as a thank you." Stefan got up and put his jacket on ready to leave. Elena showed him out the door. "Don't I get a kiss goodbye?" He smirked, knowing he was pushing it then laughed to himself when she shut to the door on him without saying another word.

That night Stefan lay in his bed, surrounded by the darkness from the midnight sky, but engaged in his thoughts which were keeping him from sleeping.

_The image of her face _seems_ permanently embedded in my brain now. God only knows that this girl will be the reason my heart stops, it's been less than twenty four hours_ and _already she's making it race. Tomorrow is a new day, one that I will embrace and look forward to so I can get to know Elena more. I need to get to know her more for my own sanity, and sooner rather than later._

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**I don't know how I feel about this chapter, how about you guys? Be sure to let me know.**

**I did enjoy writing the interaction between Stefan and Elena, you see Stefan in a completely different way to how he's portrayed on the show. Also, I'm finding it easier to write the subconscious thoughts than the actual story so I think I'm keeping it for now and see how it goes, of course, it will only be either Stefan's thoughts or Elena's depending on what the chapter is about. **

**What to expect for the next chapter? More Matt and Caroline, more Stelena interaction and perhaps a little more insight into Stefan and Giuseppe... just perhaps. **

**Thanks for reading! (Don't forget to go ahead and click that follow button on twitter - sophiaspaul)**


	3. Chapter 3

**Here it is guys, chapter 3! I don't want to give too much away, but it's very much dialogue based as opposed to the first two chapters.**

**Enjoy!**

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_You know one day, you may find yourself lost. Now, I don't mean you just go walking into the forest one day and you end up not knowing where you are, but it follows the same principal; you go walking into the big world out there and you might just become lost, whether that be not knowing where you want your life to head or there often comes a time where you lose yourself, your personality - sometimes who you want to be gets overtaken by who you're expected to be, and pretty soon who you're expected to be becomes who you are. Luckily being brought up by my dad I was never expected to be anything or do anything I didn't want to and now at 22 years old I'd happily say I know myself and I know what I want to do with my life, at least I did... Coming to Mystic Falls a week ago and just the last few months in general has made me realise you will never be one hundred percent certain of who you are or where you're headed, you'll always reach a crossroad and ask yourself "where to now"? I'm currently at that point and Elena Gilbert is the reason I am asking myself that right now. I'm lost._

Stefan was awoken from his thoughts when his father entered his room.

"Stefan, Jeremy Gilbert is here for you, he's downstairs waiting." Stefan jumped up off his bed and hopped downstairs.

"Hey Jeremy, what's up?" Stefan asked smiling. Within a week Jeremy and Stefan had already formed a bond and a friendship. Jeremy really admired him, Stefan made him feel at ease and although being 6 years his senior, he didn't belittle or patronise him.

"I was thinking maybe we could head to Mystic Grill and play some pool?"

"Yeah sure, let me just grab my jacket." Stefan quickly rushed upstairs to get his jacket then came down. The two then headed out to his car.

The place was packed out, apparently some local band was playing tonight so everyone was here.

"Oh look there's Elena and Caroline," Jeremy pointed out. Stefan looked to see Elena drinking what looked like a beer whilst everyone around her, including Caroline were enjoying themselves, having a laugh, as you would.

The two boys went over to an empty pool table and began playing. Stefan couldn't help but notice Jeremy staring at a girl who looked about his age.

"Who's that man?" he asked curiously.

"Oh nobody, c'mon your turn." Jeremy was visibly blushing.

"Are you sure?" Jeremy nodded sheepishly. "Look man, if you like someone, you just go for it," Stefan advised him and gave him a supportive pat on the back.

"Easy for you to say, I mean look at you," Jeremy looked down. "You're confident, good-looking and I'm... well I'm just me, I can't even talk to someone without saying something stupid."

"That's not true. You've never said anything stupid to me. The trick is to just be yourself Jer, ignore the fact you don't know the girl, you just go there and be yourself and if she doesn't like that well then at least you know you tried," Stefan smiled encouragingly. Jeremy walked over to the girl deciding to take Stefan's advice, after all he was right - it couldn't hurt to try.

Meanwhile, over at Elena's and Caroline's table, Caroline was sulking about a guy at the bar who wouldn't look their way, Elena's face made it obvious that she really couldn't really care less.

"For God's sake, why doesn't he look here? Anyway, look who's here! The guy we saw the other day." And that was when Elena finally paid attention.

"What? Where?" Elena looked around panicking, until she finally spotted Stefan. "Oh God, Caroline don't attract attention. Oh my fucking God, he's coming this way," Elena tried hiding her face but unfortunately for her Caroline was already waving for him to come over.

"Gosh, you're even more attractive in person..." Caroline expressed flirtatiously.

"You must be Caroline, Elena's friend right?" Stefan took her hand and kissed it sweetly making her blush. "She never mentioned you were this beautiful."

"That's because I've never mentioned her at all," Elena snapped and glared at Stefan.

"Oh, Elena, I never saw you there, hey there gorgeous, how are you today?" Elena scoffed and ignored him. "You know what your problem is Elena? You just need to learn to smile. You almost look as though a cat has pooped on your face today." Could this get any worse? Between the loud music banging in her ear, the many drunk people surrounding her and now Stefan being here, she just wanted to leave.

"Right?! Elena, you should really take his advice, this is why boys never come over, you always look like you're ready to kill someone." Elena was becoming miffed with both of them, especially Caroline, like she was meant to be HER friend not someone who she had just met, not Stefan's. "Speaking of guys, that sexy piece of man meat over there still ain't looking over here."

"Tyler?! You've been talking about him all this time?" Elena questioned.

"You know him?! Oh my God Elena, why have you only just mentioned this!" Before they realised, Stefan was already over there talking to him. "What's Stefan doing, Elena? Oh my fucking God, he's coming over with him, they're coming over! How do I look? Good? Alright, okay, cool..." Caroline tried to hide the fact she was a nervous wreck right now.

"Tyler, meet my friend Caroline. Beautiful right?" Tyler looked over at the blonde and smiled.

"Yeah, she's pretty. Hey, I'm Tyler," he said putting his hand out. He seemed like a really chill and laid back guy.

"Now, Elena and I will leave you guys to get to know each other." Stefan dragged Elena out of her seat. Before they left, Caroline whispered a quick thank you to Stefan.

Elena reluctantly sat at a table with Stefan. She scowled at him, being certain to make clear that she was pissed at him. "Why do you have to be so forward?" Stefan chuckled at her.

"Me? Forward? I was just helping out my friend Caroline," he replied presumptuously.

"Correction, MY friend Caroline. And she didn't need your help. Why can't you just back off?" Why did this guy think he was the best? She seriously just wanted to punch him square in the face at this very moment and that smirk... she wanted to wipe the freaking smirk off of his face.

"Well, I don't see you helping her out, anyway look at her, she looks happy don't ya think?" Elena looked over and to her annoyance, Caroline was giggling away like there was no tomorrow, it almost pained her that she couldn't do that for her friend, but Stefan, someone they barely even knew, could.

"Do you have to be so fucking arrogant about everything?" Although she was not wanting an answer, of course he'd obviously have something to respond with anyway.

"I wouldn't call it arrogance, it's called being charismatic, something you majorly lack." Stefan liked saying it how it was, he didn't like to fabricate things even if the things he said were slightly insensitive.

"You don't know me," she snarled.

Stefan could see he had pissed her off for real now. "Look Elena, there's no need to take life so seriously, I mean look around, we've all been through shit but that doesn't mean you have to stay stuck in the past and push people away, you only get one shot at life," he stated truthfully.

"Whatever Stefan, like I said you don't know me or my life." Elena subconsciously thanked God when Matt came walking over with a tray of drinks."

"Hey Elena," he greeted her smiling.

"Matty, hey there." Elena was secretly hoping Matt would make up something so she could get away from here.

"Elena, aren't you going to introduce me? Hi, I'm Stefan, Elena's friend," Stefan decided to introduce himself, shaking Matt's hand. Elena was about to spit her drink out when she heard the word "friend". "So, are you guys dating or what?"

"No!" Both Matt and Elena said simultaneously. Stefan looked at them both suspiciously.

"Elena, I better get back to work, but I'll see you tomorrow, I have lots to tell you." Matt kissed her cheek. "It was nice meeting you, Stefan," he added before leaving the two alone, yet again. Elena took a sip out of her drink then noticed Stefan just smirking at her.

"You like him don't you?"

"No, Stefan, I do not." Stefan was hoping she'd say that. "Where's my brother, by the way? Isn't he meant to be with you?" She asked looking around, worried.

"Oh he's over there talking to his crush," he smiled proudly and pointed at the two teenagers.

"Jeremy is talking to a girl?" she asked surprised. "Wow... Quite the matchmaker aren't you?" Stefan shrugged.

"He's a good kid. Anyway, come with me." Stefan took Elena's hand and lugged her outside to his car."

"What? Where we going? Stefan, I can't leave Jeremy here on his own I-" Elena attempted to get out of Stefan's grasp.

"You'll see. Don't worry about Jer, we won't be long."

"Stefan, I could get you jailed for kidnap here, did I mention Caroline's mom is the town's sheriff? Tell me where we're going." Stefan refused to tell her. Eventually, Elena sighed, giving up trying to fight and got inside his car.

After about ten minutes - ten minutes of pure awkward silence - Stefan finally stopped driving. He went over to open the door for Elena.

"Now I understand why you brought me here..." Elena said in barely a whisper. She looked ahead in awe at the strikingly sensational view. They were on Mystic Hill, the peak point of Mystic Falls where you had a panoramic view of the whole town. It was truly remarkable. "I remember you, me and Damon used to come here after lunch and didn't go home until at least sunset. Damon would take his chances to woo me by picking a bunch of flowers. Your dad would eventually end up driving up here and dragged us all home."

Stefan smiled, reminiscing at the memories. Those were good days, they were simply teenagers with no worries in the world. "Yeah..." he said inhaling the beautiful fresh air.

"Why did you bring me up here Stefan?" She looked up at him.

"You said I don't know you, and you're right, I don't, so I thought this would be the perfect opportunity to get to know you because believe it or not Elena, I would like nothing more than to be your friend and maybe I can prove to you that I'm not actually such a bad guy like you think I am," he explained.

"So, you bring me up to a remote area... are you sure you aren't secretly a serial killer?" Elena said pretending to be scared.

"Oh wow, is that Elena Gilbert trying to joke around?" he teased. Elena lightly punched Stefan's shoulder as he laughed. "But no, I can assure you I'm most definitely not a serial killer." Elena hadn't had the chance to grab her coat on the way out of Mystic Grill so now she was slightly cold which caused her to shiver. "You cold?" Stefan was about to take his jacket off to give it to Elena, but she just brushed it off.

"No it's okay," she said as she sat on the grass. "So, I heard about Damon, I haven't had the chance to say that I'm sorry. He was such a great guy," she said looking sadly at him. Stefan took a seat beside her and the two of them gazed ahead at the shadow of Mystic Falls in front of the beautifully painted yellow, orange and pink sky. The sun was still burning brightly. It was strange, since Stefan had arrived there'd not yet been a single drop of rain here in Mystic Falls.

"Yeah, it sucked. I mean when someone close to you dies, it's not something that's easy to deal with or something you really ever get over." Elena paused for a moment trying to think of what to say, talking about people dying immediately reverted her mind back to her father.

"I haven't had the chance to talk to your dad yet, how has he been?"

"Oh you know, he's dealt with it the best he can, he tries to avoid the situation altogether so we've never spoke about with each other." Elena nodded, understanding completely, she never really liked talking to people about her dad so she understood why Giuseppe was like that. "Elena?"

"Yeah?" she mumbled quietly.

"I heard about your dad too..." Stefan looked at her trying to read her facial expressions, she had a blank look.

"No. We aren't talking about my dad Stefan, you said you wanted to talk about me okay, he's off limits, I just..." Before she could get another word in she broke down in tears. "He's dead Stefan I-"

"Shhh. Elena, you don't have to explain, I'm sorry I mentioned it." He pulled her into a tight hug. And suddenly Elena had let her guard down, she was letting someone see a side to her she rarely showed anyone. Elena was meant to be strong, and here she was crying in someone's arms. She cried and cried. This was the first time in a long time she just allowed herself to let it all out, all the tears she had held back in order to keep her family together, all the tears that had collected up since Grayson died, it was all coming out now. Stefan comforted her, rubbing gentle circles on her back until she was finally ready to talk.

"One day he was here and the next... he just, he left us. For my dad, tomorrow never came. He never got to say goodbye to us, he just... died. I never even had the chance to tell my dad that I love him. For goodness sake, I don't even know how he died to this day Stefan. Do you know what that's like?" Stefan could feel her pain, it's like her tears were threatening his tears to fall. He didn't like seeing her like this. "I told myself though, after the day we found out he was dead, I'd remain strong, for Jeremy and for my mom. But sometimes, I just need someone, someone to just cry to once in a while."

"You have me, Elena, we haven't known each other for too long, but I'm here for you," Stefan offered genuinely.

"Anyway, look at me, I'm a mess." She let out a small laugh and wiped the remaining tears falling down her cheek.

"You've never looked more beautiful," he smiled.

"I don't know about that. Anyway, how come you came here, it's been years since you guys last came to Mystic Falls."

"After Damon died, nowhere really felt like home and it still doesn't, so my dad and I, we just move from place to place, I guess."

"So, it's not permanent then?" she asked, almost sadly.

"I don't know, I guess we'll see. So what's with you and Matt, by the way?" he asked, nudging her playfully.

"Nothing Stefan, like I said, we're friends. We met in college and trust me we'd never be anything more. Matt is just... Matt's not my type." Elena shuddered at the thought of Matt and her dating. She continued, "Don't get me wrong, he's a great guy, but just not for me."

"Oh you have a type huh?" Stefan raised an eyebrow.

"Stefan, I am human, you speak as though I'm freaking Medusa or some shit."

"I don't know you could have fooled me," he said joking, earning him yet another punch.

"Can I tell you something?" Stefan nodded. "You were right, you're not a bad guy at all, I guess I judged you a little too harshly, I mean you can sometimes be overly confident but Stefan Salvatore, I must say I am pleasantly surprised. I remember when we were kids, you were so shy and awkward around girls, you have changed a lot," she said smiled.

"You should do that more often, you know." He looked at her admiringly.

"What? Compliment you? I bet you'd love that," she laughed.

"No, I mean smile. You have beautiful smile, you should show it off more."

"Oh please," she said not believing him.

"No I'm serious. Look, Elena it's not so hard." Stefan showed off his grin. "You see, now you try." Elena laughed as Stefan used his fingers to form a smile on Elena's face. Their faces were only inches apart right now. Stefan could not help but stare at her perfectly soft lips, looking ever so kissable in that moment. Elena could feel her heart rate speed up to the point where it felt like her heart would jump out of her chest. She slowly bit her lip and leaned in just a little closer. Stefan rested his palm against her warm cheek and caressed it gently with his thumb.

"Elena..." he whispered, closing his eyes. Their lips were just barely touching now.

_It was almost like a fairytale, one moment we were joking around and the next her face is parallel to mine, and our lips are so close I can almost taste the lip-gloss she was wearing. I wanted to feel her lips pressed against mine. The warmth of her breath against my lips was almost taunting me. And in that moment, it's as though time had frozen and the world had stopped and now it was only Elena and I. _

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**Will they kiss or won't they? ;) **

**I enjoyed writing this chapter, you see Stefan's more sensitive side and Elena's more vulnerable and open side. I guess the things you can expect for the upcoming chapters is a friendship (or possibly more) forming, I don't know. All I can say now is look forward to the story unravelling, because as of right now we haven't actually seen much drama.**

**Anyway let me know what you guys think, because I'd love to hear it! **

**Thanks for reading.**

**(For updates here's my twitter - sophiaspaul)**


	4. Chapter 4

**Finally! Here it is guys chapter 4! **

**Just a heads up, we won't just have one of the character's thoughts like the previous 3 chapters, but instead both, so I hope that's not confusing or anything. But anyway...**

**Enjoy!**

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_There's about a million odd thoughts running through my mind at this very moment. Do I kiss him? Do I not? I want to... I really want to. But it's so soon, I don't know. Maybe I'm just over-thinking this. My heart is telling me, "Don't rush into things, Elena." and my head is telling me "Just go for it, there's nothing to lose." _

Elena leaned in a little closer until her lips gently touched his skin. Stefan closed his eyes as he felt her lips, but to his disappointment and surprise, against his cheek. He felt almost stupid for thinking that she'd actually go ahead and kiss him. Who was he kidding? _My father always told me to follow my heart and I guess ultimately your heart always makes you make the right choices._

"Thank you Stefan, for listening. It's nice talking to someone who kind of understands what you're going through, but it's getting kinda late so I better get going, mom's probably wondering where I am." She smiled and left a visibly disheartened Stefan behind. He touched the spot she had just kissed, trying to savour the moment.

It was an incredibly long walk from Mystic Hill back to her home, but this allowed Elena have some time to herself to think about what just happened back there. She was really confused and just needed this time to reflect. She knew that Stefan was slightly upset but she had to, in the end, do what was right for herself.

_I'm almost 21 years old and I've never had a serious boyfriend. Relationships have never been a priority to me. I'd look around and I'd see most girls my age in long term relationships then there's those who tend to play the field and keep their options open, but me, I've never been into that sort of stuff. To be honest I've never thought to myself I need a boyfriend or I want a boyfriend. I mean yeah, one day I do hope to find someone who truly loves me and I truly love them but until now I've never gave it much thought. Is that a bad thing? What would have happened if I had kissed Stefan? As much as I wanted to, I think I did the right thing by not kissing him. It's way too soon plus I don't even like the guy, at least I think I don't. Sometimes you just get caught in the moment and your mind plays tricks on you, your moral judgement is often clouded by your inner desires... not that my inner desire is to kiss Stefan... ugh I don't know. I mean he's an attrative guy, one would call me crazy if I was to say I didn't want to kiss him. I do feel kinda guilty though, he seemed to look so hurt. If I do know one thing as a girl, it's that he wanted to kiss me._

Elena heard the sound of a car approaching and slowing down behind her. She instantly recognised it when she turned around. She squinted as the headlights illuminated her body and flashed in her eyes.

"Elena, hey!" She saw Matt's head popping out the window, and that goofy smile of his which was always enough to brighten up her day.

"Matt? Aren't you meant to be at work?" she asked raising an eyebrow. She thought he'd still be at Mystic Grill maybe cleaning up or something like he usually did at this time.

"Yeah, but I got to leave early. You want a ride home? It's kinda late for you to be walking on your own don't ya think? C'mon get in, I drive past your house anyway, so you may as well," Matt offered. Elena hopped inside and buckled up. "What are you even doing walking around at this time?" he asked rather protectively.

"Eh, long story, I'll tell you another time though. What was it that you wanted to tell me earlier, by the way?" She quickly changed the subject, hoping to avoid the Stefan situation for now. She'd rather have that forgotten about and Matt wasn't exactly the ideal person to talk about this to.

"Oh yeah, so you remember that new girl in our class, well somehow she got my number and rang me up asking if I wanted to get a drink sometime!" he beamed. This was an unusual occurrence since it was Matt who more often than not was the one who asked the girl out on the date.

"Seriously? I really don't know how you do it." Elena said shaking her head. "What's her name?"

"Bonnie. She's absolutely gorgeous, like I could honestly see myself in a relationship with her." Elena gave him a funny look. This was exactly where these two differed. Matt was very forward when it came to relationships, he'd rush into things then it would end up disastrous, on the other hand Elena was very wary and didn't open up to anyone really. It'd take a lot for a guy to even get her to talk to them, perhaps that's why she never had a proper relationship.

"Dude, you barely even know her, for all you know she could be a bitch. But I will be sure to give her a warning, next time I see her and let her know Matty is on the prowl," she winked, giving him a sarcastically sweet smile.

Matt finally arrived and stopped his car in front of Elena's. She quickly said goodbye to him and walked to her front door whilst rummaging through her bag, looking for her keys. However, she stopped immediately when she could hear the sound of intense yelling from inside. _Mom and grandma..._

"It's because of you my Grayson died! I don't know why he ever married you! Almost 25 years he wasted with you and there was never a time he was not miserable! Then you went and adopted that orphan child leading him to his death!" Elena suddenly felt a pang of pain in her stomach, like someone was physically stabbing her repeatedly. Surely she was not the reason her father died, she never knew the real reason why, but all she knew in that moment was that she loved her father so much to ever hurt him in any way. It was to her belief that they'd always had a great relationship.

"Don't you dare talk about our daughter like that. I may have adopted Elena but she's just as much part of this family as Jeremy is. I felt sorry for Grayson having to call you his mother. In fact Miranda, you made his life a living hell, you never accepted Elena and you never accepted me. You're nothing but a bitter old hag. And Elena does not need your negativity in her life, that girl has been through so much for you to bring her down in the most malicious of ways." Elena tried holding back the tears as much as possible, but she just couldn't. All those years she had spent trying to gain her grandmother's love and affection and for what?

_Wha... H-how could she... How could she say that? My father's death was not my fault was it? It couldn't be, no it just can't be. I loved my dad, more than anything, I didn't kill him, I refuse to believe that. I just... I don't even wanna go inside there, I don't even wanna take one look at her face. She is supposed to be my grandma for God's sake. All those years... All those years I wasted, trying to get her to love me, just half the amount she loved Jeremy... I..._

Elena took a seat on the steps not being able to endure all that she had just heard. She despairingly put her head in her hands and cried. She just couldn't believe how someone could be capable of saying such spiteful things, let alone the woman she called her grandmother. She didn't wanna go inside, but she also had nowhere else to go, so she was stuck here.

"Elena? What are you doing out here?" she heard her mother's tearful voice and scoffed. Although she wasn't actually upset with her mom, she had no reason to be, after all her mother was in there defending her, she was just hurt. "Did you hear all that?" Jenna asked but Elena didn't respond. "Oh darling, you weren't meant to. It just all blew out of proportion. I'm sure your grandmother didn't mean any of what she said." Jenna took a seat beside Elena and put her arm around her.

"Sure," she said blankly.

"Honey, we all say things we don't mean sometimes, I'm sure your grandmother was just-"

Elena cut her mother off, "Mom, I'm not 10 anymore, I know exactly what I heard and I understand completely that she wasn't just saying it, she meant it. I mean of course she meant it, she's hated me 21 years of my life, what makes you think she was just saying it for the sake it. So if you're just going to try and fabricate this just like you've fabricated the real reason dad died then you may as well just leave me alone," she sniffed and wiped her tears with her sleeve. Jenna was taken aback by her daughter's tone and decided it'd be best if she just left her alone for now. "Wait, mom... I'm sorry, that was uncalled for. I just... I don't know how I'm meant to deal with this, like how am I expected to go back in there knowing she thinks I killed her son."

"Elena, your grandmother is just a very resentful old woman. All you should keep in mind is that you have Jeremy and I and we love you no matter what. Your father's death wasn't because of you, so I don't want you thinking that. Grayson loved you and Jeremy more than anything in the world, you have no idea. He'd have went to the end of the earth for you both because you were his everything, okay?" Jenna gently wiped the remaining tears on her daughter's face and pulled her in for a comforting hug.

"Okay. I love you mom." Elena held onto her mom tight and closed her eyes. It was times like this she really appreciated Jenna. She always knew the right things to say and knew exactly how to comfort her.

"I love you too," she whispered and kissed Elena's forehead. "So, anyway, enough of this emotional stuff. Where have you been?" Jenna asked curiously.

"Well... Stefan, sort of, kind of took me somewhere," Elena explained coyly. Her cheeks were flushed with a rosy pink colour. She had no idea why she was even blushing, it wasn't really a big deal or anything.

"Stefan huh? As in hunky, hero hair Stefan?" Jenna joked, playfully nudging Elena.

"Hunky, hero hair? Really, are you serious right now mom?" Elena cringed.

"Yeah, like his hair, it's so perfectly sculpted all the time, there's never a hair out of place, don't you agree? Anyway, where did he take you? Details Elena, I need details."

Elena groaned at her mom, she was very nosey at times. "He took me to Mystic Hill and we just talked, got to know each other a little more and I guess he's not completely the asshole I initially thought he was." She then covered her mouth and quickly mumbled the last part hoping Jenna wouldn't get it, "And we almost kissed."

"You what?!" Jenna exclaimed all too excitedly. Whenever Elena mentioned any guys in her life, Jenna would instantly become interested. There was even times where Jenna would organise dates behind Elena's back. Obviously, none of those ever worked out but there was no hurt in trying.

"We didn't though. I don't even know if I like the guy, so I kind of just ended up kissing his cheek and it was definitely too soon to do anything like that now. I mean he's literally just came into town and he's unsure of whether he's even staying here permanently."

"Gosh, if I were just a few years younger, I'd have totally gone for it," she laughed gleefully - she was half joking, but at the same time half serious.

Elena opened her mouth, completely taken by surprise by her mother's comments. "Mom! Could you get any creepier?!"

"Oh c'mon Elena, there's no denying he's drop dead gorgeous. Not to mention his charismatic and charming personality is the icing on the cake."

"Okay, fine, I'll give you that." Elena said and they both laughed hysterically like two school girls.

Meanwhile, Stefan still had not went home and it was getting pretty late. He sat in his and decided to drive to Wickery Bridge just to waste a little time. He could not stop thinking about Elena.

_I still cannot comprehend as to why she didn't kiss me. Doesn't she like me or something? I mean looking back maybe it was that right thing to do, after all the situation I'm in complicates everything but nevertheless that doesn't change the fact I was yearning for that kiss. But I don't wanna drag her into all the shit I'm through at the moment. I just can't help but wonder how that would have went if she had kissed me..._

Stefan's thoughts were broken when he suddenly felt his phone vibrate in his pocket. It was Giuseppe.

"Hey dad, what's up?"

_"Uh, you kinda have a visitor Stef... Do you think you could get here as soon as possible? I think it's important."_ Giuseppe sounded very much cautious and almost reserved. Something was definitely not right.

"A visitor? Who is it?" Stefan asked skeptically

_"Lexi."_ All of a sudden, Stefan felt uneasy. What was Lexi doing in town, and why she come so late at night?

"Alright, I'm on my way. Tell her I won't be too long." He quickly got into his car and drove him as fast as possible.

When he got to his house, he reluctantly walked inside, not looking forward to the next conversation he was about to have.

"Stefan?" He turned around and saw the last person he wanted to see then mentally prepared himself.

"Lexi, what are you doing here?"

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**So... what did ya think? Annoyed they didn't kiss? I just felt like it was way too soon, I want their friendship to build before they rush into things. And what about your thoughts on Lexi? Who is she to Stefan? I guess you can look forward to finding out ;)**

**But anyway, I want to apologise for the late update, I've just been so busy with uni stuff and essays, not only that but I just couldn't manage to put this chapter together, like I didn't know where I wanted it to go and I didn't really wanna rush something mediocre so decided to take my time.**

**I'm not really sure how often other writers update their stories but I've decided that my update schedule will be sometime during the weekends, and if you don't see a chapter up during that period then assume I'm busy. **

**Thanks so much for reading and hope you can take the time to review! :)**

**(My twitter for updates - sophiaspaul)**


	5. Chapter 5

**Oh wow, it has been a while. I guess I lost my muse and couldn't seem to write which I apologise for! But chapter 5, here it is. **

**Disclaimer: Some scenes may seem familiar, I just wanna put it out there that I don't own these scenes or anything like that, but I just thought it'd give the story just a little something. **

**Enjoy!**

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_"Stefan, I love you, I want to be with you." Stefan looked at her and smiled. He placed his hand on her cheek, gently caressing it and looked into her beautiful chocolaty brown eyes._

_"I love you too, Elena." He slowly leaned in until their lips met. Elena smiled into the kiss, wrapping her arms around him as he did with her. She never knew what happiness truly felt like until she was in the arms of the man she loved - Stefan. Stefan was her everything, he was the one who could make her smile so effortlessly and make her laugh even when she was at her lowest. Stefan came into her life at a time she needed him most and showed her what life is all about; to live it and to embrace every moment like it was the last because after all it was never certain if tomorrow would come._

Elena suddenly woke up and looked around her room confused.

_Was that a dream? Was I dreaming about Stefan Salvatore? Oh my god, what is happening to me? _

She immediately jumped out of her bed and rushed into her bathroom. She quickly turned the tap on and splashed cold water over her face.

_That felt so real. He kissed me, it's like I actually felt his lips and it felt really... nice. _

She shook her head to get rid of those thoughts. Looking at the time, she had only half an hour to get ready for college.

After she'd got ready as fast as possible she grabbed a slice of toast on the way out and then off she rushed to college.

She actually got there late and interrupted the lecture that was currently going on. She went looking for a seat after apologising to the lecturer and glanced at Matt who had no free seats beside him, so she was stuck at the back. She quickly took a seat and organised all her books and grabbed a pen.

"Bit late aren't you?" she heard a deep voice beside her comment.

"Uh, overslept I gue... Stefan?!" she whispered a little too loudly causing people to turn around and stare. "What are you doing here?"

"What do you mean what am I doing here? It's college in case you didn't know so I came here to learn, Elena." he smiled and tapped his pen on her nose causing her to frown and slap his hand away.

"Oh and you just so happened to take the same class as me?" she asked, glaring at him.

"Don't flatter yourself Elena, I've actually always been interested in... American literature is it?" she shook her head and he chuckled. "Chill Elena, if you must know why am I here it's so I could spend more time with you and get to know you some more," he said genuinely and smiled. Elena was about to respond but the lecturer interrupted.

"Miss Gilbert? Not interrupting am I?" Elena shook her head. "You mind informing us all what year John Steinbeck's novel 'Of Mice and Men' was written?"

Elena nervously scratched her head and she could hear Stefan snickering beside her. "Uh... nineteen twen.. thir... nineteen thirty four?"

"No Miss Gilbert, if you spent less time gossiping and more time listening you'd know it was nineteen thirty eight," the lecturer stated sternly.

"Uh actually sir... I think that you'll find that it was nineteen thirty seven," Stefan challenged.

"And who might you be?" The lecturer was beginning to get impatient and searched through the book to see if Stefan was right to correct him.

"Stefan Salvatore, sir."

"Well Stefan Salvatore, seems on this occassion you have rightfully corrected me. Now if you two don't mind, I'd like to continue this session without the muttering in the background." Stefan smirked at Elena who was quite visibly annoyed at him.

Half way through the lecture Stefan got really bored. Elena was beside him but she was too busy concentrating for reasons he could not fathom. He sighed trying to think of something to do. He looked at the blank piece of paper in front of him and quickly scribbled something on it and passed it to Elena as subtly as possible, trying not to attract any attention from the others sitting around them.

'Dinner, later?'

Elena wrote back, 'Are we in high school or something?"

'Is that a yes?' Stefan responded and added a winky face.

'That's a maybe.' and Elena too, added a winky face. Stefan was almost surprised by that hint of a flirtatious vibe he got back from Elena.

_Stefan just asked me out on a date... what. Okay Elena, keep your cool. I dunno what I'm more surprised about; the fact that I, Elena Gilbert, got asked out on a date, or that Stefan fucking sexy ass Salvatore just asked me out. First the dream, now this... I just can't seem to escape him._

When the lecture had finally finished, Stefan stood outside waiting for Elena.

"Jesus, are you stalking me or something?" She got the shock of her life when Stefan just appeared beside her.

"Stalking? No. I just can't help being infatuated by you Elena Gilbert and I'm still waiting for an answer by the way."

"I said maybe."

"Alright, so pick you up at 7?" He winked and left.

Elena saw Matt walking in the hallway and decided to call out for him. He was walking with a girl who looked the same height as her, dark hair almost black.

"Matty!" They both turned around and Elena jogged towards them.

"Hey Elena," he greeted her, smiling cheerfully. Elena stared at the girl suspiciously but discretely. She was grinning for some reason, and to be honest she had a gorgeous smile. She displayed a full fringe, almost past her eyes and her hair was up to her shoulders. She was very pretty indeed. "This is Bonnie, Bonnie this is my good friend Elena." Matt said looking between the two girls.

"Hi Elena, it's nice to meet you. I've heard quite a lot of things about you," Bonnie said politely, smiling.

"All good I hope. And likewise, Matty over here has been talking about you quite a bit too, seems as though he's developing a little crush eh Matt?" Elena said winking and the two girls giggled.

"Well Elena, Bonnie and I are actually going for some lunch. Would you like to join?" Matt offered.

"Aw no, I'll let you two lovebirds go alone. It'll give you the opportunity to get to know each other some more, after all love is a pretty great thing! Thanks for the offer though," Elena smiled.

"Love is a pretty great thing? Am I hearing right? Is Elena Gilbert actually acknowledging that love really does exist? I must be dreaming!" Matt joked earning a light punch from Elena.

"Shut up. But it was really nice meeting you Bonnie, hope we can talk some more another time. Have a great lunch you guys, don't do anything I wouldn't do!" She shouted as she walked off.

_Love is a pretty great thing... he's right what even was that? Why would I ever say such a thing? Oh I don't know... I genuinely believe I'm going crazy._

Elena walked along the streets of Mystic Falls smiling to herself which was an out of the ordinary occurrence. In fact she couldn't remember the last time she was this... she was this happy. It was rather odd, not necessarily a bad odd though, just odd nonetheless. She glanced at an old couple sitting on a bench as she walked past. They looked so happy. The elderly man was feeding, who Elena assumed to be his wife, ice cream - they looked ever so adorable. She grinned at them and they waved at her. As she kept walking she came across a beautiful flowerbed with an array of different flowers, from the usual roses and tulips, to her favourite; peonies. She picked one and inhaled the beautifully fresh smell as she closed her eyes, the smell itself was enough to make her smile. She spotted a little girl in a buggy giggling and handed her the flower. Before she knew it, she bumped into yet another couple, this time a younger one, not much younger than herself. They looked so in love, he was gazing at her - the love was almost transparent in his eyes, as they walked hand in hand not worrying about anything or anyone in the world.

When she finally got home, she greeted her mom with a kiss on the cheek.

"Hey mom! It's a stunning day today isn't it? The sun is out shining brightly, the sky is beautifully painted pale blue, the birds are singing outside and people are happy as ever! It's gorgeous!" Jenna looked at Elena, peculiarly.

"Uh... Who are you and what have you done with my daughter?"

"It's still me mom, clearly. I just... I don't know I came out of college today with a whole new perspective on just life in general I guess. It's like something hit me, but I don't know what. I mean honestly, what is the point of being miserable all the time, after all life is short to be wasting it with frowns and tears." Elena preached as she picked up a couple grapes and threw them in her mouth.

"Well what ever has hit you, I can't say I don't like it. I've missed seeing that smile darling," Jenna said smiling happily.

"You better get used to it then because it ain't disappearing any time soon."

_What actually is going on? I'm smiling, I'm laughing... I'm happy. I feel like I'm the me I was before dad died. Everything feels different, everything is different. I greeted everyone with a smile, I talked to everyone smiling. Colours seem more vibrant, they seem more lustrous. The wind even seems to be beautifully fragrant._

Elena looked to her watch... 5:30pm. She decided to take a quick shower then go get ready since Stefan would be here in an hour and a half. She couldn't decide whether she was excited or nervous or both. Yeah, she was definitely both. Their conversation the other day at Mystic Hill made her excited to get to know him more, but being alone again with him and the thought that something could potentially happen between them today made her nervous.

After she showered she went into her room and looked at the mirror for a long while. Previously, she'd never really made an effort in her appearance but something in her head was making her want to make an effort. She really had the desire to knock Stefan off his feet so she looked and pondered on how she could do this. Of course, she was not a make-up or hair expert but she'd make do with what she knew. She wanted to look sexy, but still maintaining a sense of sophistication. She decided she'd put some loose curls in her hair that would flow effortlessly past her shoulders. Red lipstick would overdo it so she went a pretty nude-ish, pink-ish colour that had a bit of a gloss to it. And as for her eyes, she went for a subtle smoky look. _Perfect._

Now for her dress. This was going to take a while but she still had around half an hour to choose one and get it on. She dug through her closet looking for the perfect dress to wear. She found three potential ones - a gorgeous champagne-coloured one, an elegant midnight blue one and finally a classy dark grey one. They all reached just above her knees so they weren't extremely revealing.

"Mom!" she shouted. Jenna came rushing up to Elena's room. "Which one?" Elena asked holding all three dresses up.

Jenna raised her eyebrows. "Dresses? Since when do you wear dresses? And why?"

"Mom, enough with the questions, just tell me which one."

"The blue one, definitely. Now explain." Elena turned around and began putting the dress on.

"Oh you know, just going on a date."

"A date?! With Stefan?! Awh!" Elena rolled her eyes, her mom was almost too sickeningly enthusiastic about this.

"When he comes, can you act the slightest bit cool about this, please? I don't want you embarassing me."

"Sure, sure. My lips are sealed."

"Okay, how do I look?" Elena sighed and turned around facing Jenna who looked at her in awe.

"Awh, honey you look absolutely stunning. That boy won't know what's him when he sees you." Elena smiled. But when she suddenly heard the doorbell she became anxious.

"Oh my God, he's here." She slowly walked downstairs, being careful not to trip because of the heels she was wearing.

"Elena, hi." She opened the door to see an incredibly handsome looking Stefan holding a bunch of flowers. He was wearing a grey dress shirt, dark jeans a jacket. It was obvious that he had made an effort.

"You got me flowers!" She grinned as he handed them to her.

"I figured it's a date, why not do it right?"

"Thank you, they're beautiful. I'll just put them by here so we can get going." She placed it on top of the cabinet just beside the door.

"Did I mention you look incredibly beautiful right now?" Stefan complimented her as he opened the car door which caused Elena to blush.

"Thank you," she smiled as she got in.

After around ten minutes into driving Elena decided to ask where they were headed.

"Oh you know just somewhere," he replied smiling. "It's a surprise."

"Stefan... I've told you, I don't like surprises, just tell me."

"You'll like this one, I promise. Besides we're almost there no point in ruining it now."

Elena looked outside the window there was nothing but empty fields and a few odd trees here and there.

"You aren't like planning on killing me are you?" she asked half serious and half joking.

"What do you take me for Elena? No, of course I'm not gonna kill you. Oh look, we're here." He stopped the car outside a beautiful little cottage, the type of thing your grandparents would own and take you to during weekends.

"Aw this place is so cute! What is this place though?"

"This place has been vacant since I could remember, I mean it is in a very remote area so I guess no one ever really thought to live here," he shrugged.

"So aren't we like trespassing or something?"

"If you're scared we're going to get caught by the cops or something, we're not. There's nothing around for at least a few miles. Come on, I wanna show you something."

He took Elena's hand and led her to the small garage at the back.

"What? We planning on having a romantic dinner in a garage?" she asked teasingly. Stefan opened up the garage to a vehicle covered with black fabric which he quickly whipped off. "Oh my god, how old is this thing?! It looks like those cars you'd see in black and white movies!" Elena ran her hands across the red car in awe, stunned by the vintage beauty.

"Most likely. It's a 1963 Porsche 356B Karmann Coupe. I left it here so it'd be safe. I inherited it from my grandfather who inherited from his father. It's beautiful right?"

"Yeah," she whispered. Stefan then unlocked the doors and gestured for Elena to get it. "Are you serious?" Stefan nodded at her smiling as she got in. "Where we headed now?"

"For dinner, of course."

"You just gonna leave your car here?"

"Yeah don't worry about it."

When they got to the restaurant, Stefan allowed the valet to take his car and park it.

"Wow... posh huh?" Elena looked up at the stunning building in front of her, she could bet that when she stepped inside there'd be rich men probably taking their mistresses out for dinner.

"Well I saw a McDonald's on the way back we could go there if you want?"

"No no, posh is fine with me," she laughed.

"Alright let's go eat, I'm starving."

The date was going just as they'd both hoped. They were talking. They were laughing. And there were even points where silence fell upon them, but the comfortable sort.

Who knew Stefan Salvatore, the charismatic charmer, and Elena Gilbert, the stubborn, short-fused student, would have so much in common? The thing was when they were alone, Elena felt like she could open up to him easily, like there was no barriers but when people were present it almost felt like what ever she said was being heard and she was being judged. As much as she'd tell herself she didn't care what other people thought, deep down, she did. And Stefan, his arrogance was almost, but not completely, non-existent when he was around Elena. He was more sincere in his words and didn't feel the need to put on a show. Where other would laugh at his sarcasm and his quick wit, somehow he didn't need to try with Elena, instead he'd manage to make her laugh effortlessly. He wanted to impress her, of course, but something told him that being himself was doing just that.

That maintained a carefree, flirtatious atmosphere throughout their date and what was great was that there were none of those awkward first date silences, conversation flowed and sparks were flying uncontrollably.

"So, if you had to rate this date outta ten, what would you give it?" Stefan asked taking a sip of his wine.

"Hmmm, that's a difficult one, I mean it took a while for us to actually finally get to eating with your stop at the cottage and there's also the fact you got me peonies, which aren't exactly my favourite flowers... but, you did get us here in a pretty sweet ride, I must say, so I'd give the date a solid seven and a half," she giggled, teasing him.

Stefan pretended to look hurt and scoffed, "Seven and a half?! You make my heart ache Elena Gilbert, you really do."

"No but if you want a serious answer, it's honestly the best date I've been on. You really do know how to make a girl feel special Stefan Salvatore, I'll give you that," she smiled at him shyly across the table playing with her empty glass.

After Stefan paid the bill, the two decided to call it a night.

"So, here were are, home sweet home. Looks like Jenna's still up," Stefan commented, peeking through the window to see Jenna reading a book. "What do you say we go for a drink tomorrow? Something a little more low key. I mean I can't promise it'll be better than a seven and a half, but a guy can try right?" he chuckled.

"Thanks for a great night Stefan, seriously I can't remember enjoying myself like that in a long time, so thank you." She leaned in to kiss his cheek and as she was about to pull away, he grabbed her wrist. She smirked then leaned back in to whisper in his ear, "Oh and by the way, peonies are my favourite." The feeling of her breath down his neck sent shivers down his spine and made him feel weak as though his legs were about to give way. She escaped from his grasp and smugly added, "Good night Stefan." knowing she had him wrapped around her finger. Stefan walked down the front steps, shaking his head and laughed to himself. Oh there is definitely something infectious about this girl. And as he slowly strolled to his house across the road, he muttered too himself, "Like I said Elena, you really and truly do make my heart ache."

Elena went inside her house and leaned against the door as she shut it. She had the widest grin on her face right now, and it wouldn't be disappearing any time soon.

* * *

**Thoughts? Alright, so I think it's time we get a little more drama in this now, it's been pretty ... what's the word, boring? up 'til now, but we are pretty much at the middle point of the story so perhaps some spicing up will do the job. **

**I also have ideas for my next fic, so I'm looking to finish this one asap.**

**Anyway, be sure to leave a review if you can, and maybe let me know what you guys would like to see in the upcoming chapters?**

**As always, thanks for reading!**

**(Twitter for updates: sophiaspaul)**


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